Rail-fastener.



J. A. WIDNER.

RAIL FASTENEE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. as, 1908.

904,824. Patented Nov. 24, 1908;

UNITED STATES @llflFIQE.

JOHN A. WIDNER, OF ALPENA, MICHIGAN.

RAIL-FASTENER.

no. ceases.

Application filed Karen 26, 1908.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. WIDNER, a citizen of the UnitedState's,residing at Alna, in "the county of-Alpena and State of ichi an, haveinvented a new and useful Railastener, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to rail fasteners and is more particularlydesigned for use upon metallic railway ties such, for example, as shownin my co-pending application.

The object of the invention is to provide a fastener which is sim le,durable and efiicient, dispenses with t e use of spikes, bolts andsimilar fastening devices, and can be readily adjustedso as to -firmlyengage a rail,

should the rail become loosefrom any cause as, for example, the wearingof its supportin cushion.

Vith these and other objects in view the inventionconsists of certainnovel features r of construction and combinations of parts tion of aportion of. a he and showing a rail secured thereon by means of thefasteners constituting the present invention, a portion of the tie beingbroken away. Fig. 2 is a plan View of the parts shown in 1. Fi s. 3 andat are detail views of the two menu are of each fastener.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, 1 designates ametal tie preferably of that character having top flanges 2 extending"longitudinally thereof, 4, said flanges being rovided with slots 3 forthe reception of t e fasteners. These slots are spaced apart a distanceequal to or a little less than the width of the base of a rail 4 and acushioning block 5 of wood or other material may be arranged on the tiebetween these slots so as to constitute a yieldable sup ort for therail.

Each astener utilized for securing the rail to the tie consists of agripping member 6 in the form of an elongated metal plate having jaws 7and 8 extending from one longitudinal edge thereof at the ends of theplate. The upper j aw 'i is beveled in the direction of its length so asto rest snugly upon one base flange of the rail A; while the lower 8isbeveled transversey as indicated pan ticularly in Fig. so as to ftsnugly upon Specification of Letters Patent.

lPatented Nov. 24, 1908.

Serial No. 423,425.

notch or recess 9 extending transversely therein anddesigned to registerwith any one of a series of similar notches 10 formed in one face of akey 11. The notched face of this key is inclined relative tothe'opposite facethereof so as to bear firmly upon its correspondinginclined face of plate 6.

In using the fasteners herein described the rail is positioned upon thetie and between slots 3, and a cushioning block 5 is preferablyinterposed between the rail and tie. The plate 6- is then insertedthrough one of the slots 3 so that jaw 7 will rest upon one of the baseflanges of the rail while the jaw 8 will contact with the bottom surfaceof one of the top flanges 2 of the tie. Key 1l .is then inserted intothe slot 3 so that the notched faces of the key and plate contact and bydriving the key downward into the slot the inclined face thereof willcoiiperate with the corresponding face of the plate 6 so as to shift thejaws 7 and 8 longitudinally of the tie and cause the beveled or Workingface of jaw 7 to tightly bind on the base flange of the rail. Afterfasteners have been placed in slots at both sides of the rail andadjusted in the manner described each key can besccured to its plate 6by inserting a rivet 12 into the alining notches of the plate and keyand upsetting the ends thereof so as to prevent the accidentaldisplacement of the rlvet and the consequent displacement of the partsof the fastener. Should the cushion block 5 become packed or worn so asto cause the rail to settle either or both of the fas tenors can bereadily tightened upon the rail simply by driving the keys further intothe slots 3 after the rivets 12 have been removed from engagementtherewith. To remove each ri et it is necessary to cut or file off oneof its heads so that it can be readily driven out of the registeringnotches in which it is seated. Importance is attached.

ing the rivets 12 it becomes absolutely impossible for the fasteners tobecome displaced unless the rivet is cut or filed.

That is-claimed is:

The combination with a metal tie including longitudinal oppositelyextending top flanges, the lower faces of said flanges convergingdownwardly, and each flange having fastener-receiving slots; of arailssupporting cushion upon the flanges and between the slots, saidcushions being spaced from the slots, and rail-fastening means withineach slot, and comprising a member having upper and lower rail andtie-engaging jaws respectively .extendingfrom one face thereof, the.lower tie-engaging jaw being beveled laterally to conform to the angleof the lower face of the tie flange, the rail-engaging jaw being beveledto conform to the inclination member in said slot and with one wall ofthe slot for shifting said member toward the cushioning block to clampthe cushioning device between the tie and the rail engaged by thefastener member, the adjoining faces of said member and key beingnotched and disposed to register, and fastening means insertible intothe registering notches.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixedmy signa-- ture in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN A. WIDNER.

l Vitnesses JAMES, FRANCIS,

HnNRY K. Gns'ron.

